Play suspended due to darkness at PGA TOUR Canada Q-School

April 12, 2013, Beaumont, CA (ISN) – Play was called due to darkness during the final round of PGA TOUR Canada Q-School, but not before Josh Anderson made a big move to put himself in position for an exempt card for the 2013 season.

Anderson, a 24-year old from Murrieta, California, shot a six-under 66 to finish seven-under par and tied for sixth, inside the projected number for exempt cards at the conclusion of Friday’s play. The top 20 players after 72 holes will earn exempt status, with the next 20 plus ties earning non-exempt status.

The final round will resume at 7 AM Saturday morning, with 33 players left to complete play.

Anderson’s big move likely ended a nasty streak of close calls at Qualifying Tournaments this year, after missing the number to advance by one shot at the first stage of PGA TOUR Qualifying School and two shots at the Asian Tour Q-School.

“It feels good to be on the other side of a Q-School for once,” said Anderson, who credited an unlikely chip in on the 14th hole for his success. After teeing off on the 10th hole of the Champions course, Anderson was short-sided before finding the bottom of the cup with his chip on the par four 14th. “That’s the kind of place I shouldn’t have chipped in from. That really helped me get some momentum.”

54-hole leader Brady Schnell was among the players left on the course. Schnell was 13-under par through 54 holes and led by three strokes over Erik Barnes and Trevor Murphy.

A fog delay of over one hour and 30 minutes forced the completion of PGA TOUR Canada to be pushed to Saturday. Play was called due to darkness at 7:20 PM Friday, with the final round set to resume Saturday at 7:00 AM.

Metzger’s big finish pays off: Through 36 holes, Andre Metzger was well back of the number to earn status at five-over par and in a tie for 93rd. But with rounds of 64 and 70 over the last two days, the 31-year old jumped all the way to five-under par and in good position to earn exempt status for 2013. For Metzger, the big finish is the first step towards his ultimate goal of making the PGA TOUR, starting with PGA TOUR Canada.

“My goal is to make it to the PGA TOUR,” said Metzger. “The biggest thing for me is playing in tournaments that are run like a PGA TOUR event. Having caddies, galleries and just the atmosphere being similar to a PGA TOUR event is really important.”

As of Friday night, Metzger was in a tie for tenth, two shots clear of the number for exempt cards.

Fernandez-Valdes looking for access in more than one way: Needing a big move in the final round, Argentina’s Jorge Fernandez-Valdes carded six birdies and an eagle for a six-under par 66 to move to two-under par for the week. While his 72-hole total currently puts him outside the number for exempt status, the 20-year old could still end up playing PGA TOUR Canada events this summer via his performance on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica. Fernandez-Valdes currently sits fourth on Latinoamérica’s Order of Merit, and with five players from that tour gaining access to each PGA TOUR Canada event this summer, he could have the opportunity to earn exemptions into the first seven events in Canada this summer. The exemptions will be based off Latinoamérica’s Order of Merit.

Also making a big move was 2006 PGA TOUR Canada Order of Merit winner Stephen Gangluff, who shot a 67 to finish three-under par. Fernandez-Valdes’ Argentinian countryman Alan Wagner, a winner on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica in 2012, shot a four-under 68 Friday to finish at three-under par total, currently the projected number for exempt status. Fargo, North Dakota’s Josh Persons also shot a 68 to move inside the number at four-under par.

Other big moves: Tulsa, Oklahoma’s Michael Derminio posted a 66 of his own to reach one-under par total for the tournament, currently on the number for non-exempt status. Joining him with sub-70 rounds to reach one-under were Jordan Mitchell with a 67, Fergal Rafferty, Travis Bertoni and 2012 PGA TOUR Canada member Kevin McAlpine with 68s and Jamison Sindelar and Jesse Mueller with 69s.

Hoag goes sub-30: Finishing round three early Friday morning, 24-year old Bo Hoag carded a back-nine 29 on the Legends Course – the only sub-30 nine of the week – to reach eight-under par. Hoag was alone in fifth heading into the final round.